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Three New Halloween Treats

This month, to celebrate All Hallow’s Eve, we are being treat-ed to three new animated Halloween specials:

First, on Friday the 13th (how appropriate), Nickelodeon will air “SpongeBob SquarePants: The Legend of Boo-kini Bottom”, the second stop-motion animation episode in the show’s history (following a very successful holiday special that aired on both CBS and Nick in 2012). As for the plot – according to Variety – it’s a reunion for SpongeBob and crew:

The special finds SpongeBob and company donning costumes and decorating their neighborhood for some Halloween fun, but the spooky Flying Dutchman has other plans.

On Friday Oct. 27 at 8pm, CBS presents “Michael Jackson’s Halloween” – a CGI special that showcases The King of Pop’s music in a new story. According to the CBS website:

The animated special follows Vincent and Victoria, who “accidentally” cross paths on Halloween night and embark on a magical adventure of personal discovery. Along with Ichabod—an adorable pup—the duo find themselves in the mysterious This Place Hotel, aptly located at 777 Jackson Street. The hour-long event culminates in an incredible dance finale—featuring an animated version of the King of Pop himself.

An animated version of “Thriller” should be fun to watch. The voice cast includes Jim Parsons, Brad Garrett, Lucas Till, Kiersey Clemons, Christine Baranski, Lucy Liu and Alan Cumming.

And then… there’s David S. Pumpkins. He was played by Tom Hanks in a “Saturday Night Live” sketch last year that was a viral hit. Now Hanks is returning as the voice of Pumpkins for a half-hour, hand-drawn special airing on NBC Saturday Oct. 28 at 11:30pm. Here’s the storyline from the network:

“Set in a small suburban town on All Hallows’ Eve, the special centers on David Pumpkins and his skeleton sidekicks who show a young boy and his sister the true meaning of Halloween, answering none of their questions along the way.”

Joining Hanks in this voice cast are Peter Dinklage and SNL writers/performers Mikey Day, Bobby Moynihan (now on CBS’ “Me, Myself & I”) and Streeter Seidel. A few weeks ago, Hanks teased on Instagram that he was bringing back Pumpkins – with a picture of a page of a script titled “The David S. Pumpkins Song”.

Moynihan recently revealed to Seth Meyers: “Tom Hanks… in between dress and air… not a fan of the sketch. Thought it was very bizarre. But now he’s very happy with it.”